A Reflection upon Romans 5:1-5
My Dear Child:
I write you this letter
Out of a deep,
Profound,
Lasting
And holy
Love for you.
I hope that you will read it often –
Perhaps even commit parts of it
To memory
So that you can call upon my words
At times when you need them most
I hope as well that at least some of my words
Will be like daily breath
For you –
Pulsing through your heart and mind
Without any effort or conscious thought,
But instead
Filling you up,
Giving you peace,
Sustaining you
And encouraging you
In both the good times
And the bad times of your life.
There are many things that I want you
To know and believe
To trust and to rely upon –
Even if you cannot completely understand them.
First –
And last –
Holy bookends to all that I have to say to you –
You are my child –
Precious,
Honored,
Loved by me –
I have called you by name;
You are mine.
Nothing can separate you from me –
Not the good,
Nor the bad –
Not the joyous,
Nor the sorrowful –
Not conviction
Nor doubt,
Not life
Nor death.
You are mine –
Fashioned by me
Named by me
Loved by me
Claimed by me
Held by me –
Forever, and for all eternity –
You are my child.
Trust this –
Even when you cannot.
Trust this –
Even when it seems impossible to believe.
Trust this –
Even when all around you gives you no reason to trust.
Trust this –
Simply because I have said it to you.
You are my child –
Trust that this word is true.
Because you are mine,
I exhort you,
Challenge you,
Urge you,
Press you,
And encourage you –
To not be afraid.
Do not be afraid, my child
As you journey through this life.
Do not be afraid of
What you do not know.
Do not be afraid
When it seems like trouble is all around you.
Do not be afraid
When you do not know what to do.
Do not be afraid
When you do not know what the future holds.
Do not be afraid
When the tasks are many, and the resources are few.
Do not be afraid
When things do not work out like you hope they will.
Do not be afraid
When sorrow comes.
Do not be afraid
When there are obstacles on your path.
Do not be afraid
When you fail.
Do not be afraid
In the face of suffering.
Do not be afraid
Because I will go with you wherever you go.
Do not be afraid
For I will be your shield.
Do not be afraid
For I will give you strength and courage.
Do not be afraid
For I will always hear your cries.
Do not be afraid
For I will deliver you from the hands of your enemies.
Wherever you are on the journey –
Do not be afraid
For I am your God.
But you also must know
That there will be obstacles
Along your path.
You will face difficult times.
You will face challenges
Hurts
Brokenness –
Both within and without.
You will face things that you do not understand.
You will make mistakes.
Others will hurt you.
You will hurt others.
You will lose others –
Both in this life
And to the next.
There will be suffering.
This world is
Fragile
Bruised
And broken –
And you are too –
And because of that,
The way will not always be easy.
The journey at times will take
Twists and turns
Bumps and bends
That you do not anticipate –
That are just plain hard.
You will not always be able to see
Around the next bend.
You will not always be able to see
The top of the mountain.
You will not always be able to see
The goal for which you press on.
But I will be there.
I promise you –
I will be there.
Sometimes it will feel like
You are rowing against the current
Toward a shore that will never come.
Sometimes it will feel like the wilderness
Stretches on toward an unreachable horizon.
Sometimes you may wonder if there is any fire to warm you
And lead you
Through the darkness.
Sometimes you will wonder if the sorrow of the night
Will ever break into joy of the morning.
But it will –
Joy will come in the morning –
And I will be there
To make it so.
In all of these times,
Know that I promise
You will be more than a conqueror.
Know that I promise
That whatever you suffer –
Suffering is not all there is to your story.
Know that I promise
That resurrection follows
Death –
Always.
Jesus is the
Resurrection –
Always.
Jesus is the Life –
Always.
Jesus is
The first born of the dead,
The new creation,
The one who is the way –
And has opened the door
Who is the truth
Who is the life –
For you,
Who has prepared a place
For you
Who has gone ahead of you
Who will come again to take you to himself,
And is with you still
In every moment
Of every day.
In all these things –
Wherever you are on the journey –
Whether the name of Jesus
Rises from your lips in confession
Or the questions of doubt
Rise from your heart in confusion –
Know that
I will never leave you
Nor will I ever forsake you.
I will be with you always –
Even to the end of the age.
And you will be with me,
In the place where there will be
No more
Tears,
No more suffering,
No more pain,
No more death –
Because
My peace,
I give to you,
Not as the world gives,
Do I give to you,
But as I alone can give –
Peace that is from me –
Who has born all your griefs
And carried all your sorrows –
Peace that comes from me alone,
Who is
Wonderful Counselor
Mighty God
Everlasting Father –
Prince of Peace –
For you.
Peace that passes all understanding –
Holy
Divine
Life-giving peace –
For you.
Breathe it in
Through the power of
My Spirit.
So as you make your way
On this wandering,
Twisting,
Turning,
Meandering,
Winding
Road through life –
A road of suffering
A road of endurance
A road of character
A road of hope –
Lift your eyes up to the hills,
And see that your help
Comes from the me
Who made heaven and earth.
Trust and believe
That as I have
Numbered the stars of the heavens,
So too have I
Numbered the hairs on your head.
I have clothed you
In garments of holiness and righteousness.
I, who knows when a sparrow falls,
Will bear you up on eagle’s wings.
I, who knit you together in your mother’s womb
Will hold you forever
In the palm of my hand.
So, my child,
Take heart.
Take one day at a time.
Live in each moment
As a precious gift that I have given.
Love generously.
Risk boldly.
Fail courageously.
Cast all of your burdens upon me
Hope fiercely.
For I promise you –
Hope in me
Will not disappoint you,
For while you were yet a sinner
Christ died for you,
Making you an heir of the glory of God.
So, wherever you are on the journey,
You are
Covered in grace,
Held in hope,
Filled with the power of the Holy Spirit –
So,
Press on toward the goal
For the prize of the heavenly call
In Christ Jesus your Lord.
Amen
And Amen.
Let it be so.
-God
